


Another Day

by CannedBread



Category: Horizon: Zero Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: Ersa mention, Gen, HZD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-21
Updated: 2018-07-21
Packaged: 2019-06-14 04:52:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 890
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15381051
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CannedBread/pseuds/CannedBread
Summary: Erend gets some much needed time to himself





	Another Day

The Carja sun beat down without mercy, like an unrelenting forge fire that you couldn’t escape. The heat followed you, hanging on tightly until it was hard to breathe. The Carja loved their sun but Erend wasn’t Carja and he wasn’t overly fond of being slowly roasted in his armour. It made him grumpy and quick tempered… more quick tempered than usual. It didn’t take long to see he wasn’t the only one similarly afflicted.

His day on duty consisted of breaking up fights throughout Meridian. Petty squabbles and a few out-and-out fistfights. A handful of drunks needed to be dragged out of various bars, all the while Erend wished he could just throw in the towel and join them. But, somehow, he managed to make it to the end of his day both sober and without having wrung anyone’s neck. Something he considered a display of the greatest will-power.

The heavy leather of his armour felt more like lead than hide and every time he moved, he could feel the sweat running down his back. Sand had worked its way under the fabric and chaffed miserably. He needed to get away for a bit or he was likely to snap at the wrong person.

First to the vendors. Erend stopped at one stall selling roast meat. For a few shards, he got himself a decent chunk of boar and a few small potatoes tucked neatly into a metal casing scrounged off one machine or another. At another stall, he got himself half a loaf of crusty bread and a wedge of cheese along with a couple of apples, still green and tart.

With his food in hand, he marched toward the Northern gate into the city to take the elevator down. Even that alone felt like a relief. The Royal Maizelands and Meridian village lay ahead of him, just down the path, but he turned away instead. Toward the river and headed north, Erend followed the water through the trees. There was a rough path beaten into the grass by children who’d had the same idea to escape the heat of the sun.

It lead to where the river spread out into a small lake at the base of two waterfalls. Erend came around the massive stone that made the space seem separate from the world around it, circled on three sides by stone cliffs. The children who’d been there playing during the day had all gone, off back to the village for dinner, leaving Erend to himself.

The spray from the falls was a blessed relief and he could hardly contain himself. The hot food, bread, and cheese he set on a rock, dumping his armour and clothes next to it. The apples, he tied up in a piece of cloth and carried them with him to the water. A flat stone jutted out from the shore making a spot that made it perfect for children, sitting only about a foot and a half below the surface. Erend found a heavy stone and weighed down his cloth bag under the water, letting the apples chill.

Everything finally set, he could stop thinking and just enjoy himself. The water was cold compared to the hot summer day and it sent a rush of goose pimples over his skin. For a moment he stood at the edge of the rock, curling his toes over the edge. After a miserable day, this place was heaven. The Carja could keep their blessed sun, all he wanted was this quiet spot to swim. He took a breath and dove deep into the water, staying under as long as his lungs would let him. When he finally broke the surface, he let out a laugh that echoed off the stone walls.

There was no rush, no urgency. He could simply bob around leisurely, swimming slow laps and letting the water wash away the stress and sweat of the day in equal measure. There were a few good sized fish there too and he made a mental note to come back with a fishing pole later. Once his fingers started to prune and the shadows were getting longer, he climbed up on to a rock under one of the falls and let the water beat down on him. It felt good and refreshing in a way a bath could never do. Only after that did he finally climb back up on to the shore.

His apples were beautifully cold and his food was still reasonably warm. Erend sat down, eating with his hands and letting the air dry him. The swim had gotten his appetite back and it didn’t take long before he was mopping up the last of the grease from the boar with the heel of bread. Everything had tasted so good, he was almost sad to see it gone. The apples made for a nice desert, sour enough to make him pucker, just the way he liked them. One final walk down to the water and he knelt to wash his hands and face, cupping his hands for a drink.

Erend tugged his clothes and armour back on, starting the walk back up to the city. He stopped only once on his way back, standing next to the river and looking up at the stars.

“Goodnight, Ersa. I miss you, big sister.”


End file.
